Are We Doing It Right?

Steve McCoy has a great post here which got me thinking: Are we doing it (evangelism) right?

Below is an excerpt from Keith Miller's "Scent of Love"...

The early church grew “not because of the [spiritual gifts] of Christians – such as the gift of speaking in tongues – and not because Christianity was such a palatable doctrine (to the contrary, it is about the most unpalatable doctrine there is) but because they had discovered the secret of community.
Generally they did not have to lift a finger to evangelize. Someone would be walking down a back alley in Corinth or Ephesus and would see a group of people sitting together talking about the strangest things – something about a man and a tree and an execution and an empty tomb. What they were talking about made no sense to the onlooker.
But there was something about the way they spoke to one another, about the way they looked at one another, about the way they cried together, the way they laughed together, the way they touched one another that was strangely appealing. It gave off the scent of love. The onlooker would start to drift farther down the alley, only to be pulled back to this little group like a bee to a flower. He would listen some more, still not understanding, and start to drift away again. But again he would be pulled back, thinking, I don’t have the slightest idea what these people are talking about, but whatever it is, I want part of it."

I'm wondering if we were people like that, would we still have a need for FAITH training...? Don't get me wrong--I'm not against FAITH, or WWJD stuff, or any other evangelism tool/strategy.

But somewhere along the way, things begin to smell less and less like the aroma Miller talks about above. Or maybe there's too much spiritual ragweed in the air for me to detect it.

Thoughts?

Are You A Dreamer?

I was reading this morning about Joshua and Caleb (Numbers 13 and 14). It seems to me that revolutionaries are Dreamers. And sometimes dreamers just get in the way...It reminded me of the first Matrix movie. Remember how Morpheus always seemed to speak to Neo in a 'dream'? (BTW, Morpheus was name of the Roman god of dreams...)

Dreams are what keeps you going. I'm talking about God-given dreams, ideas, plans, etc. that lead to God-honoring results. God-given dreams give you God-given drive.

Dreams are specific, not general. Dreams are personal, not public. Dreams appear to others as extreme and absurd. Illogical. And they are always outside the realm of possibility.

Dreams are the stuff that make leaders. If you don’t dream, you can’t lead.

But back to Joshua and Caleb.
They had determination, vision, and dreams. The other 10 priests sent to spy out the land did not.

Thoughts?

1. Those without dreams and determination will always outnumber those who do. Ten saw the problem, two saw the solution. Ten saw the obstacle; two saw the answer. Ten saw the size of the enemy; two saw the size of their God.

2. They had a different spirit. (Numbers 14:24). Not more popular or more intelligent. As a result, God spared him and Joshua from death in the wilderness. (Numbers 14:30-35) The rest of their generation died. Every tombstone along the way was a reminder that God means what He says. Wow.

3. They had a different ending. They finished well. Picture Caleb—85 years-old—hiking up the mountain, rolling up his sleeves to take on the giants. The majority of people thought he was nuts. But that's okay. Since when do dreamers/leaders worry about the majority?Joshua—Joshua 23:6-7—warns the people not to associate with other nations among them so they don’t begin to serve false gods.

4 Things to I need to remember:
-----Never use age as an excuse.
-----Never take your cues from the crowd.
-----Never think your choices obligate anyone else.
-----Never quit because someone disagrees with you.

God never puts a small dream in anyone's heart. Why? Small dreams don't need Him. And big dreams require Him.

What is it that God has put in your heart to do for Him? Maybe it's something that is so huge, you’re scared to even say it aloud…

Be Joshua.
Go find Caleb.
And go for it!

I'm Loaded! It's official...

Yup. There are approximately 5,949,632,435 people in the world poorer than me. How do I feel about that?

Every year our society gazes enviously at the lists of the rich and famous, wondering what it would be like to have that kind of cash.

Get a grip. Go here and find out where you fit on the Big List.